Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and Furlough
The government has now announced a range of measures to support businesses during this uncertain time.
One of these is the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme; under this scheme all UK employers will be able to access support to continue paying part of the salary for those employees who would otherwise have been laid off during this crisis.
All UK businesses are eligible and to apply for the scheme businesses must follow these steps:
First, they must designate affected employees as ‘furloughed workers,’ and notify your employees of this change – changing the status of employees remains subject to existing employment law and, depending on the employment contract, may be subject to negotiation. Identifying employees as ‘furloughed workers’ means they will be kept on the payroll without working.
Once the new online portal is live, businesses must submit information to HMRC about the employees that have been furloughed and their earnings (HMRC will set out further details on the information required).
People who get furloughed must not work for the employer during the period of furlough but usually return to their job afterwards (unless redundancies follow).
If you require support with the Furlough process, including advice, letter templates and guidance on best practice during these uncertain times, please contact The HR Team today.
